✵ Woodencloak by Dawn Ford | Blog Tour & Review

Welcome to the Blog Tour for Woodencloak by Dawn Ford, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

About the Book

Title: Woodencloak Series: Band of Unlikely Heroes #1 Author: Dawn Ford Publisher: Scrivenings Press Release Date: February 7, 2023 Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy

Thirteen-year-old troll princess Horra Fyd’s life changes forever after an unexpected visit from the fairy queen and her two daughters. Tales of fairies gave Horra nightmares as a young troll. Before evening falls, however, a real nightmare unfolds. Horra’s father, King Fyd, goes missing. Her woodgoblin instructor is poisoned and uses his magic to revert to a seed. And a mysterious, gaunt man wearing a cape and playing a panflute joins the fairies in trying to capture her.

Horra flees but is instantly lost in a world she’s never had to travel alone. A letter hidden in her knapsack from her late instructor informs her that a power-hungry Erlking seeks revenge against her kingdom and their allies for a two-generation-old war. She is tasked with getting his seed to the Weald, a magical forest. There it can regenerate into a druid, the only creature with the power to hold the balance between good and evil, and who is able to defeat the Erlking.

However, the Erlking is always one step behind her. Horra must fight to protect herself, but she has no magic. She accepts a gift from a dead druid spirit of a charmed woodencloak to disguise her. But magic failed her mother, how can she possibly trust it?

Can Horra have faith and courage enough to trust a power she can’t see, and become a warrior heroine her foremothers can be proud of? Or will she allow fear to rule over her and lose everything that matters—including her life?

My Thoughts/Review

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I loved reading Woodencloak!

I am not in its target audience, but I still found the story to be both exciting and delightfully original.

Horra begins with a normal life (normal except that she’s a young troll princess in a magical land), but this is quickly upended as fairy guests a powerful “Erlking” bring her kingdom down into chaos. She herself is barely able to escape with her life, and, without her father or her mentor, she is forced to fight for her survival in the wild.

The story starts off a little slow, and I was actually rather annoyed at Horra when she was first introduced. I found her to be overly whiney and rude without provocation. For example, even before the fairy guests were rude to her, she was already thinking about how they were nasty and gross and how she hated them. I understand that they’re no good guys, but it felt a little unomfortable how she was disdainful without clear explanation.

However, our heroine more than makes up for this later as the book picks up speed and she is thrown into danger. She learns to have courage and continues pushing forward, even when fear surrounds her and she is seemingly alone. If I were you, I wouldn’t let the slow beginning stop you from reading this one!

I’m very happy to have discovered this book. Woodencloak is set in a land where female royals inherit the throne, and the main character is a troll princess., and though I wasn’t sure at first, I ended up rather enjoying the unconventional nature of the story.

And what I loved most was the impressive balance between the staple action that one should expect in fantasy and the deeper themes that ultimately make a book worth the read.

Basically, I can’t wait until Book 2 is out!

Overall, Woodencloak is an exciting and delightfully original tale, and I would recommend it to middle grade and YA readers (ages 13-17) as well as parents looking for a story to read to younger children.

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. All thoughts and opinions expressed are completely my own, and I was not required to leave a positive review.

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes and Noble | BookDepository | IndieBound | BookBub

Also Available

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About the Author

Dawn Ford lives in a small town nestled among the Loess Hills in Western Iowa with her husband and Snickers, the Wonder Beagle. Dawn’s love for stories came naturally to her as a child who was lucky enough to be able to explore the Iowa pastures and countryside in search of adventure.

Dawn adores anything steampunk, is mesmerized by shiny, pretty things, loves purses, shoes, and needs at least one good, strong cup of coffee a day to wake up. Dawn’s novel, The Girl With Stars In Her Eyes, won the 2016 ACFW Genesis Award under the title, Kingdom Come. Her flash fiction stories have been featured in Havok, an online magazine. Connect with Dawn by visiting dawnfordauthor.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.

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Tour Giveaway

(3) winners will receive a signed paperback copy of Woodencloak!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight March 13, 2023 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on March 20, 2023. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

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Have you heard of many middle-grade fairy tales before? What about ones with unconventional (but nonetheless amazing) heroines? And is “action and adventure” in books important to you? (Preferred for me!) Don’t forget to enter the giveaway, and thank you for visiting my blog today!

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Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

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